Outstanding collection
of demos from Kiss and Stanley/Simmons, pre-Kiss band Wicked Lester. Of course
some of this stuff was released on the Kiss Box, but it's cool to have all this
demo stuff on one disc. All this material differs from the final album versions
and offers some insight into how the band started off. Pehaps the coolest of
these early tracks is 'She', as performed by Wicked Lester. If you can imagine Jethro Tull doing Kiss' 'She' in
the early 70's, you might get an idea of what this track sounds like, flute
and all. Several of the Wicked Lester tracks have a cool Beatle-esque pop sound.
This is especially true of "Leeta."

Kiss-Kissin' Time in San Francisco (Black Diamond/BDR 73981-A)Live in San Francisco, CA 1974

Early radio broadcast of
Kiss in San Francisco. Decent sound for such an early recording, although it's
not as clean as the official 'Alive.' This cd release also includes four bonus
demo cuts. Tracks 14 and 15 are 1981 Gene Simmons demos and are instrumental
only. Tracks 16 & 17 are 1971 demo tracks. Check out the names of the songs.
Both were used later in Kiss' career for songs that are completely different
than these demos. Nice cover art for both the front cover art and in the insert.
Acquired this disc as a gift from a friend in Germany. Seems that original bootlegs
like this are MUCH cheaper in Europe than they are in the States. In the U.S.
this disc would go for between $20-$30.

Hmmm, this cdr bootleg
is labeled Cleveland '75 and while some of it may be from that show, not all
of it is. Certainly tracks like 'Beth' and 'I Stole Your Love' are not from
'75. The sound quality varies from track to track with the first five being
excellent, but then going down a bit from there, only to get better again on
"I Stole Your Love" and "Ladies Room." I'm sure some Kiss
fan can confirm this for me, but if I am not mistaken this set of tracks was
also released on vinyl as 'Fried Alive.' Also, if anyone has cover art for this
show, I'd love to get a copy.

As bootlegs go, this one
is average to slightly above average (B - B+). It's one of those discs that
you have to listen to for a few minutes for you ears to adjust to the less than
perfect sound. The music is probably a sound board recording as the music and
vocals are clear and there is barely any crowd noise at all, which actually
sounds a bit weird. It's funny hearing Paul talk to the crowd without a response,
especially knowing that KISS were at a popularity high during this tour. The
selection of music is very good and the performance isn't bad, although it's
discs like this that make it painfully obvious how much studio work was done
on Alive and Alive II to make them sound superior. Just from the sound of the
vocals alone, you can tell that they band was putting on one hell of a show.
The cover art is excellent featuring tons of very cool photos. As usual with
bootlegs, however, the photos are not all taken from the same time period in
the bands history as there is a large photo on the foldout of Kiss the "Dynasty"-era.
Picked up this original (silver) cd on eBay for $9.99. I was actually surprised
that no one overbid me on this one.

Fantastic live bootleg
recorded during Kiss' first tour of Japan in 1977. According to the liner notes,
"This is the original "Alive II". It was recorded, mixed, fixed with overdubs,
and ready for release before it was pull at the last minute in favor of a new
studio LP instead (Love Gun)...The "Lost Alive II" album had a working title
called "Rock n' Roll Party in Tokyo" and was produced by Eddie Kramer. After
this live in Japan album was done, Eddie Kramer stayed on with the band and
made the "Love Gun" album at Record Plant Studios in New York. It's KISStory!"
Whether all this information is true or not, I can't verify. However, this is
a good sounding bootleg from a classic time in the bands history. The only real
flaws is some minor tape noise here and there. The studio tracks are slightly
different versions than the ones that appear on "Alive II". (Thanks Trog & Chris)

Best of the Solo Albums
was released in vinyl some years ago on Casablanca. As far as I am aware it
has never been officially pressed to CD. Someone, however, went through the
painstaking job of laying down all the tracks from that record, probably off
the remastered CDs in the exact order they were on the original release. As
well, they also scanned in all the original artwork from the vinyl, which is
kind of cool. However, when it comes to kiss's solo records, I think calling
it "the best of" without including every single song off Ace's release
is a crime. Personally I think Ace and Paul's albums were a great listen from
beginning to end. However, to tell the truth, I think the did a good job of
picking some of the best off Gene and Peter's CDs.

Kiss - London, England - Sept. 9, 1980 (cdr)

"Detroit Rock City"

"Cold Gin"

"Strutter"

"Calling Dr. Love"

"Is That You?"

"Firehouse"

"Talk To Me"

"You're All That
I Want"

"2000 Man/Ace Solo"

"I Was Made For
Loving You"

"New York Groove"

"Love Gun"

"God of Thunder"

"Rock and Roll
All Night"

Yet another Kiss bootleg
I got in trade. This one is a fabulous show with very low to average sound quality.
Although it's not unlistenable, it certainly will never be a frequent player.
Unfortunately this disc is also not tracked correctly and only has two songs
with tracks 1-9 being track one and tracks 10-14 being track two.

Killer show with great
sound; one of the best KISS boots I have heard so far. Apparently this was Ace
Frehley's last show with Kiss. Great artwork to boot. Some of the weaker material
from "Dynasty" and "Unmasked" sounds so much better in this
live atmosphere, it just goes to prove my point that the biggest flaw in those
albums was more the producing than the songwriting.

SIDE THREE
10. "I Was Made For Loving You"
11. "New York Groove"
12. "Love Gun"
13. "God of Thunder"
SIDE FOUR
14. "Rock and Roll
All Night"
15. "Shout It Out Loud
16. "King of the Nightime World"
17. "Black Diamond"

Outstanding vinyl bootleg. This particular copy was obtained through Backstage
Auctions and is autographed in ballpoint pen on the front cover by Gene Simmons
and Paul Stanley. The back cover is autographed in gold paint pen by Eric Carr,
but is slightly smudged. The vinyl was formerly owned by Bill Bartell and came
with a signed certificate of authenticity from Backstage Auctions & Bill
Bartell. The show itself is very good, although the sound is not perfect. This
show featured the rarely played songs "King of the Nighttime World"
and the even more rare "You're All That I Want". (Thanks Morgan)

KISS-DeMontfort Hall, Leichester, England - 10/24/83 (cdr)

DISC ONE

"Creatures
of the Night"

"Detroit
Rock City"

"Cold Gin"

"Fits Like
A Glove"

"Firehouse"

"Paul Stanley
Solo"

"Exciter"

"War Machine

"Gimme More"

"Vinnie Vincent
solo"

"Gene Simmons
solo"

"I Love It
Loud"

"I Still
Love You"

"Eric Carr
Solo"

"Young and
Wasted"

DISC TWO

"Love Gun"

"Black Diamond"

"Lick It
Up"

"Rock and
Roll All Night"

Good show but the sound
is below average and the CD is tracked incorrectly, so disc one is one long
song, as is disc two. Don't have any artwork for this one either.

Despite the laughable cover art, this is a KILLER original bootleg. Not only
is the sound quality very listenable for a bootleg, but the track listing is
incredible. Lots of songs here that would not be played again after this tour,
including "Bang Bang You," "No No No" and "Reason To Live". While the liner
notes claim all the material was recorded in Detroit 1984, it's pretty obvious
that some of this material was not from that show and tour considering the "Asylum"
and "Crazy Nights" material were recorded in later years. I love the live material
from "Crazy Nights". The studio CD was so glossy, but the live versions bring
the rock 'n' roll back to the songs. Kiss themselves have often said negative
about the "Crazy Nights" material. However, I was a fan then, saw the tour,
and loved both the music and the performance. Now if I could only find the Rochester,
NY show or the Spectrum, Philadelpia, PA show from this tour.

Great disc with excellent
sound quality. It's not a complete show, as "Detroit Rock City," "Young
& Wasted" and the drum solo were left off. Still, despite the absence
of these songs, for a single disc bootleg, this one is stellar. Great artwork
to boot. I also have a CDR compliation of the complete show, but the sound quality
is not as good and there is no separation between tracks, so I prefer this silver
disc version.

Kiss-Houston, TX, Jan. 31, 1985 (cdr)

"Young & Wasted"

"Gene Simmons Bass
Solo"

"I Love it Loud"

"I Still Love
You"

"War Machine"

"Eric Carr Drum
Solo"

"Love Gun"

"Black Diamond"

"Heavens on Fire"

"Paul Stanley
Solo"

"Under The Gun"

Excellent show, but unfortunately
the cd isn't tracked correctly and the entire disc is one long song. The sound
quality is about average for a bootleg. No cover art for this one yet either.

KISS - CHICAGO, IL - JAN. 17, 1986 (cdr)

DISC
1

"Detroit
Rock City"

"Fits Like
A Glove"

"Cold Gin"

"Uh! All
Night"

"Under the
Gun"

"Bruce Kulick
Solo"

"I Still
Love You"

"Gene Simmons
Solo"

"I Love
It Loud"

"Paul Stanley
Solo"

DISC 2

"Tears Are
Falling"

"Eric Carr
Solo"

"War Machine"

"Love Gun"

"Heaven's
On Fire"

"Won't Get
Fooled Again"

"Lick It
Up"

KISS - Monsters of Rock (Mistral/MM9101) Recorded live at the Monsters of Rock Festival, 1988,
Germany

Superb soundboard recording
of Kiss at the 1988 Monsters of Rock Festival in Germany. I believe Kiss were
the co-headliners with Iron Maiden.
The set list features an equal amount of make-up era material to the classic
80's material. Hearing bootlegs like this, I really wish that Kiss would have
released an official live-album during this period of their career. One highlight
of this disc is the fantastic version of "Black Diamond" with Eric Carr on vocals.
Also, at the beginning of "Fits Like A Glove" the band teases the audience a
bit with a bit of a Zeppelin riff. As
usual with bootlegs, the genius in packaging is evident. The photo on the front
cover is from the 1983 "Lick It Up"-era of the band with Vinnie Vincent. The
track listing give Gene Simmons credit the songwriter of "Cold Gin" where it
should be Ace Frehley. The song "Shout It Out Loud" was listed, but is not included
on the CD. "Fits Like A Glove" is split into two tracks. As well they actually
misspelled "Rock and Roll All Nite".

Kiss-Destroy the U.K. (PGAP0896)Live at Donnington, England, August 17, 1996

Audience recording of the
band's reunion tour in England. Of course, Kiss were primed and ready to go
on this tour, so the show is outstanding as is the choice of material. Pretty
sure this is not the complete set list as there are several songs missing that
the band was playing during this tour includnig "Detroit Rock City"
and "Rock and Roll All Night".

KISS - LIVE/DEMOS (cdr)

"Cold Gin"

"I Love It Loud"

"Creatures of the
Night"

"Detroit Rock City"

"Lick It Up"

"All Hell's Breaking
Loose"

"Million to One"

"Kix Are For Kids"

"When the Bell
Rings"

"Boyz Are Gonna
Rock"

"Shoot You Full
of Love"

"Baby O"

"Black Diamond"

A compilation of studio
outtakes (tracks 7-12) and live tracks (tracks 1-6) from when Vinnie Vincent
was the guitarist for the band. The live material is of such a poor sound quality,
it's not even worth listening to. The studio material is all outtakes from the
'Lick It Up' Sessions. The sound quality on these are not much better but are
listenable and an intersting look into the recording process of the band. "Boyz
Are Gonna Rock," "Shoot You Full of Love" and "Baby O"
eventually showed up on Vinnie Vincent's first solo cd. These two tracks sound
like they may have been taken right from the Vinnie
Vincent Invasion cd. "Black Diamond" is an interesting demo version
that is obviously not from the same session as the earlier "Lick it Up"
tracks. There is a major flaw in this cd as it is broken down into only two
tracks with the live cuts being track one, studio cuts being track two. I was
sort of disappointed in this one.

Excellent show from the
Farewell Tour that sounds like an audience recording. Still, the sound quality
isn't too bad, although obviously not of a professional quality. Cover art looks
EXACTLY like the Nagoya show, although it is printed on a different color paper.
Track #20 is cut, but then the complete version is included in track 21.

Excellent show from the
reunion tour. I had heard rumors that Peter Criss had once again left the band,
and Kiss were touring without him. This show confirms that rumor, for there
is a drum solo featuring Eric Singer, who is also wearing the Catman's make-up
(see the photo above). Apparently Peter Criss left because of legal disputes
over money as Kiss were offered a large sum of money for touring Australia and
Japan. Apparently 'ol Pete's lawyers felt he wasn't getting enough. Anyhow,
being that I have seen the band a few times on this reunion tour, I really enjoyed
listening to this disc. I wonder why the band did not perform Ace's "Into
the Void," as I saw them perform this one in Las Cruces and Albuquerque.

Kiss-Rock the Nations 2004: Live in AlbuquerqueRecorded live at the Journal Pavilion, Albuquerque,
NM, June 16, 2004

And what is the ultimate
concert souvenir? A live recording of the complete concert that you can actually
listen to on your way home from the concert. The master of marketing (Gene $immons)
finds a way to beat the bootlegers at their own game. After each show on the
2004 Rock the Nations Tour, in each city, they sell a complete, stereo recording
of the show for $25. Very cool! The sound quality is near perfect. Technology
rocks! Bootlegs will never be the same. The track listing here is superb as
well with Kiss pulling out a few choice cuts that haven't been played for years
like "Making Love", "War Machine" and one of my all time favorite songs "Parasite."

Since this show was only
days after the Albuquerque show above, I thought I would just included the comments
of a man who was actually there:

First, let me say that
all the naysayers about Eric and Tommy have to go see the show before they trash
it. I've seen Kiss with several different lineups, including with Ace and Peter,
and last night, Kiss sounded completely awesome! Sure... it wasn't Ace and Peter.
So what? The band sounded phenominal! I was glad to finally see them with Eric,
too, since I became a Kiss fan during the Revenge era (I'm only 24, so that's
what had just come out with I was a young teenager just getting into metal).

Some interesting notes
about the show:
1. Paul kept messing with the crowd when introducing songs. It was really funny.
For example, he introduced a song by saying "You know, there's only one
city in America that I wrote a song about. We love Detroit, blah, blah, blah,
Detroit Rock'n'Roll, etc... People, this one's called...Christine Sixteen!"
(for those of you who aren't all that familiar with Kiss, he was
leading us to believe they were going to play Detroit Rock City). He did the
same thing with a couple of songs, it was pretty funny.

2. The set list RULED!!!!
Notable inclusions were War Machine, Lick It Up, I Was Made For Loving You,
Got To Choose, Makin' Love, I Stole Your Love, and I Love It Loud, God Gave
Rock'n'Roll To You, and Unholy. ("Christine Sixteen" & "I
Stole Your Love" were not played on most shows on this tour.)

3. I've heard that Gene
has lost his voice a couple times on this tour, so it's no surprise that he
didn't sing very many songs. Paul did most of the setlist. (Probably they reason
they cut "Dr. Love" from the setlist.)

5. It was great hearing
the songs played flawlessy by a very capable band! Actually, I take it back
- it wasn't *quite* flawlessly... as I could hear on the ULTIMATE CONCERT SOUVENIR,
the "Instant Live" CD you can buy at the show! What a great idea,
that you can buy an EX+ recording of the show you were just at, warts and all!
(written by Ian Keith Hafner)